Todd Portune is calling the shots on whether Futbol Club Cincinnati gets a new stadium in Hamilton County, and the commissioner doesn't sound like he's budging on giving the club public money.

But Portune does want FC Cincinnati to join Major League Soccer. So he's asked the University of Cincinnati to partner with Hamilton County on approaching MLS to see if the league will allow the Queen City club to play permanently at Nippert Stadium.

"MLS, you tell us why it doesn't work," Portune told Politics Extra on Thursday night. "You saw the same thing we did two Wednesdays ago. You're telling me you don't want that?"

LET'S TALK: Portune made the call to UC about 10 minutes after FC Cincinnati's thrilling win over Chicago at Nippert Stadium on June 28. He watched the game on ESPN, whose commentators repeatedly praised the venue and crowd of over 32,000. He's still waiting on an answer from the university.

UC is open to the possibility of the soccer team staying at Nippert, insiders told PX. But MLS requires expansion candidates to have a soccer-specific stadium as part of the cost of admission. That allows teams to control all the revenue generated by the stadium. Non-negotiable, inflexible, no questions asked.

POWERFUL PORTUNE: The Democrat isn't accepting MLS' stadium requirement, at least not right now. Why should he? FC Cincinnati is drawing record crowds at Nippert Stadium, which is in the urban core. On the occasion Nippert's not available, the club has a backup option in Paul Brown Stadium. Remember, county taxpayers spent $710,000 to configure the stadium for soccer in case we ever landed an MLS franchise.

As president of the board of commissioners and being in the majority party, Portune essentially holds all the power on whether FC Cincinnati would get any sales tax money for a $200 million playpen. On Wednesday, the commissioners plan to roll out a list of 13 "big box" project ideas to begin public conversations about prioritizing them. The soccer stadium idea is on the list, which also includes convention centers and bridges.

"I’m unconvinced that they need a new stadium," Portune said. "We still have two perfectly good stadiums in Cincinnati that will meet their needs. Period."

Politics Extra is a weekly column looking inside Greater Cincinnati and Ohio politics. It also appears at other times throughout the week. Follow Enquirer political insider Jason Williams on Twitter @jwilliamscincy.